HISTORIC AND LITERARY CID MÍO: THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE CASTILE HERO IN ROMANCE XX

Abstract

Around the 15th century, a series of epic poems known as romances appeared in Spain reflecting the historical and cultural context of the society of the time. Over the centuries, these poems have been reproduced and have become part of the Castilian identity for safeguarding historiographic traits and characters that were important to this people. In the place of protagonists of some of these poems, historical heroes emerge and, within the genre, this type of character acquires great importance, since such texts (re)constructed these figures in order to transform them into myths of the historical period portrayed. Therefore, this article traces a brief timeline that highlights some of the main heroic manifestations, in an attempt to demonstrate the universality of this figure, while presenting its most important particularities. In addition, an exhibition was held on the protagonist of the XX novel, Mío Cid, from the historical and literary perspectives, from which differences and similarities can be seen in the construction of the Castilian hero. In the end, it is understood how the representation of the hero figure takes place in such a context, and how this mythical figure can assume a significant social and historical role for the collective imagination of the period.